By Karen Ellis
| Chocolate by Theo |
First, chocolates. I love chocolate. I’m constantly on the prowl for clean, tasty dark chocolate. Theo is organic and fair trade and have many options that are gluten and dairy free.
Check labels if you have allergies. My favorite holiday version is Nutcracker Brittle. {eco responsible}
| Rancho Meladuco Dates |
At my house we make healthy shakes for breakfast almost every morning and I throw one or two of these dates in the blender to sweeten things up. They are amazing cut up in a salad, in recipes or awesome plain, too! They come in these pretty boxes with mini tongs. {female owned company}
| Linen Quilt by Pottery Barn |
In the not cheap, but SO worth it category, is this Belgian Flax Linen quilt. It’s beautiful, minimal and really well made.
You can machine wash it, which is great for families with kids and pet kids. Every time I make my bed,
I think it was well worth the splurge!
| Cadence London Jewelry |
I love jewelry. Really love. My friend Cadence makes the most beautiful necklaces and bracelets especially if you are in love with anatomy and have an eye for detail. You can see how unique and exquisite they are! They come in different metals, so good luck trying to decide your favorite one. They are shipped from London, but well worth the wait. {female owned company}
| Deodorant by Primally Pure |
Constantly sourcing out clean body products? Me too!
This deodorant is natural, paraben free and truly works!! (they have a sensitive skin version, as well). They just launched a Charcoal Deodorant, too! Explore all their products – there are so many good ones!
{female owned company}
| Camper Mugs by Pilates Nerd |
Oops, these are SOLD out.
Camper mug that emphasizes Pilates happiness? Yes, please. I snuck this in there because it’s seasonal
and definitely on trend this year (15 oz.). I apologize if we sell out before you get a chance to get one. {female owned company}
| JENNIFER’S WAY Cookbook |
by Jennifer Esposito
The actress Jennifer Esposito shares her heartfelt love of food and recipes as a severe celiac sufferer. If you or a family member/friend have a need a great anti-inflammatory cookbook – this is for you! The recipes are delicious and completely free of gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, corn and refined sugars, basically all things that cause inflammation. {female owned company}
| Toe Stretchers by YogaBody |
Pretty much every client at my studio has used these toe stretchers during their workout and ends up purchasing them online for personal use. What makes them amazing is you can wear them during a workout for alinement and then walking barefoot and even in your shoes, afterward. I sincerely adore this product and the first time I ever wore them I was hooked!!! They feel incredible, and I even used them in a recent photo shoot for Pilates Style Magazine. When you order, you get two pairs; one small & one medium, presented in this nifty little wooden box to store them in. And least for now, you can get them on Amazon for only 16.95!
| Water Bottles by Pilates Nerd |
These are brand new. I cannot emphasize enough how this product was born much more out of my education of our need to hydrate than anything else. You should always carry water with you and the fact I could combine design and function, fills me up! (get it?)
(The logo is etched and the cap has wood burned branding)
| Almond Bar by Perfect Bar |
Okay, I bet you’ve heard of Perfect Bar. And with mainly organic ingredients, it’s just a gift to yourself. My favorite – for in between clients and workouts is Almond. No gluten, no dairy, although, in my opinion a tad too much sugar. But overall, they taste pretty delish. They are always in the refrigerated section in your favorite health food store.
| Black Hole Duffel 90L by Patagonia |
Super durable, water repellent and stylish. It can convert into a nifty backpack, too. Patagonia has video demonstrations of their gear if you like to see how it functions. Patagonia has a beautiful business mission and makes loving their products easy.
[For us at Patagonia, a love of wild and beautiful places demands participation in the fight to save them, and to help reverse the steep decline in the overall environmental health of our planet.] {eco responsible}
| Let My People Go Surfing |
by Yvon Chouinard
Business as unusual. The inspiring personal stories of Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, describes his underprivileged childhood as an immigrant in southern California, early fame as a successful mountain climber, and company’s dedication to quality goods and environmental responsibility. I loved how Yvon basically invented the fleece jacket! It’s such powerful story because it illustrates you can do things your own way, redefine ‘success’ as you see it to build a business of real passion. (YES!!) A great read! {eco responsible}
| Earphones by Sony |
Katie Bowman calls it stacking, you might call it multitasking, but when you need to move outside AND listen to another viewpoint, I say get some earphones on and take a hike! I might be old school because I don’t have wireless earphones or the super fancy Beats brand headphones. At $20 these SONY earphones get the job done. Put on your headphones & listen to your favorite podcast or book. Look for our blog on awesome podcasts to listen to coming in January! xox